Obliteration or Opportunity

We are on the brink of finding out what we are made of. Do we actually know?

When will the recriminations about what "should have been done"  begin? How soon will the question: "Why was that not done sooner?" ring constantly in our ears? 

Shooda-cooda-wooda!

We are on the brink of something. Are we standing, shaking, on the precipice of an unknown calamity. Or are we walking towards the shining shore out of the seething waves of renewal. Could we be making a new map for a new adventure story filled with longing, expectation and promise? Or will we shoot ourselves in the foot? Maybe both feet?

The world of homo sapiens has fractured and we must be ready to stand the new ground we are ploughing for ourselves. This is the real challenge, not Covid-19.

The Virus will travel its course and we will not be able to do much about that except what we are doing now. Covid-19 is here to stay!

I believe we are facing two crises. The first is the one we are struggling to overcome in the present moment - the ravages of the coronavirus. We are defending ourselves against it with all the financial, scientific and political means at our disposal. Oh, and throw in a bit of religion as well because that's when God, or Allah or Jehova, or Krishna really comes into his or her own. This is a crisis we will eventually weather. In the main, the world, the human world, is united in this cause.

The second crisis is yet to come. When we know the truth about something, what will we do about that knowledge? One cannot "unknow" something. Once known, we choose.

Australia is about to spend almost $100 million on creating a national oil stockpile, now that it is so cheap, but initially located in the United States. One wonders whether that $94 mill might be better spent further developing non-renewable energy potential. Is the Australian government implicitly saying that fossil fuels will be with us for a long time yet? Their agreement with the US is at 10 years. All knowledge leads to choices. While building storage capacity looks like a good idea it is faulty thinking because it's likely that, if we run out of oil, so will everyone else.

At the moment, all political parties are united (we call it "bi-partisan" despite there being a range of political opinions) in the effort to "flatten the curve" and save lives. Highly desirable and eminently commendable. First crisis met! But having initiated a range of measures with which the population is generally complying, what will the politicians do once the first threat is well and truly over? This is the second crisis. Will we continue to be compassionate, supportive, determined to bring humanity forward, courageous and selfless, well-informed and willing to listen?

The truth is that we already have it in us to face the second crisis. But do we have the honesty, the will to be self-reflective and the resilience to coax the solutions into the daylight?